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TSF: Deco names star team to take on Asia

Football fans in Singapore are in for an absolute treat. It's time to clear your calendars and prepare for a must-see showdown on our streets this September.

Published

15 August 2014

Tiger Street Football 2014 ambassador Deco has named four Portuguese football legends in his team to face the best street football stars in Asia (Deco's Star Selection) during the final leg of the competition.

The TSF 2014 Grand Finals will be held in Singapore on September 6 and this is where Deco and his mates Vitor Baia, Nuno Gomes, Maniche and Paulo Ferreira will take on a handpicked team made out of the best players from the tournament in an epic contest.

Vitor Baia, Maniche and Paulo Ferreira were all part of the Champions League-winning Porto side of 2006, while Benfica's Nuno Gomes was an international teammate of Deco's.

Goalkeeper Vitor Baia also had a stint at Barcelona, while Deco later reunited with Ferreira at Stamford Bridge during his four year spell with Chelsea.

The four former Portugal internationals have a combined total of 274 caps to their names, with Deco also having appeared 75 times for the national team.

Which all adds up to a simple fact... Asia's best had better watch out.

Deco has some big guns lined up behind him, and by the looks of things, they're not going to give any quarter on the street football pitch.

His signature long black locks may be gone but Porto and Barcelona’s legendary shot stopper isn’t going to let goals in for fun in Singapore.

After all, he didn’t win 26 trophies with Porto, the UEFA Club Best Goalkeeper title (2003-04) and the Portuguese Footballer of the Year titles (1988-89, 1990-91) for nothing.

Nuno Gomes, Striker

Premier League fans may remember Gomes from his short stint in Blackburn but it’s really his two spells at Benfica that made Gomes one of Europe’s top marksmen.

Always possessing an eye for the spectacular (volleys and clever flicks in particular), Gomes played in two World Cups, three European Championships and scored over 187 goals for clubs and country.

Maniche, Midfielder

In the 23rd minute of Portugal vs Netherlands at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Maniche gets a lay off at the edge of the box, takes two calm touches and blasts the ball into the back of the net venomously.

It’s a goal that sums up the all-action midfielder’s style in an illustrious 16-year career that saw him play in 6 different leagues — power plus grace, like a real street player.

Paulo Ferreira, Defender

Wherever Ferreira has been in his celebrated career, he has been a rock and a calm influence. So, it’s no surprise that he was part of a defence at Chelsea that conceded just 15 goals in the entire 2004-05 Premier League season.

Appearing almost 400 times for clubs and country, the right back has only recently retired from the game in 2013 but leaves with a healthy medal cabinet, including two Champions League titles.